prophecy

Prophecy is most often defined as the ability to predict the future or otherwise divine events which have yet to occur. As such, it plays an important part in both religious and spiritual practice, as well as in the various sacred texts of the world's religions.

The Christian Bible's Old Testament for example is filled with prophecies relating to a messiah, which Christians believe was fulfilled by the appearance of Jesus in the New Testament. It is also filled with prophets, many of whom like Daniel, Isaiah, and St. John predict both future Rapture and Armageddon in such biblical texts as the Book of Revelation.

History's best known secular prophet is Nostradamus, whose prophetic quatrains continue to fascinate millions to this day. As the year 2012 approaches, there has also been renewed interest in the prophecies of the Mayan Calendar.

Modern day prophets can be found in such diverse spiritual disciplines as Mormonism, Seventh Day Adventism, and New Age. Not surprisingly, prophecy is a hot topic in the blogosphere, where you will find numerous Prophecy Blogs ranging from Christian to New Age to Ba'hai.